Odd Fit
by charmedsilence
Summary: Zuko hopes that HIS friends will become Mai's as well. Set around that final scene at the Jasmine Dragon.


_**Odd Fit **_

"So, what do you think?" Zuko shifted his feet about, alternating his gaze between the freshly scrubbed floor of Iroh's tea shop and his girlfriend's sleepy, bored looking eyes. He reined in the eagerness he felt, eagerness to win her approval, get her okay regarding his new friends.

"The tea's good. These cookies are even better." Mai bit into one with deliberate slowness before licking her thin lips. They twitched with mischief then.

"Come on, Mai." He sounded angry now and shot Mai a glare. "You know what I'm talking about. What do you think of _them_?"

Zuko pointed to the group of young people who crowded together around one table, laughing and talking, perfectly at ease with each other. The Avatar, the waterbender, the Water Tribe warrior, the Kyoshi Warrior and the earthbender, all Zuko's friends, though he still felt like a bit of an outsider. Yet, the more time he spent with them, the more comfortable he became.

They were his first friends, really, well, besides Mai. But, when he thought about it, _she_ had been something else entirely; a crush at first, someone whose name alone made pink bloom on his cheeks, then an island of sanity and calm in the mess that was his life, a girl he could be himself around without fear, a girl who understood, a girl who cared. And finally, she'd been, the memory of her, the hope of one day returning to her, what kept him going during his banishment. Yes, Iroh and his love and his wisdom and his patience, were crucial. And so had been his determination to succeed, to win over his father once and for all.

But the recollection of their one kiss, a snatched, stolen thing, awkward but still achingly sweet, memories of her voice and her smell and her dry humour, her darkness, the disinterest she wore like an impenetrable shield, all kept him alive. Zuko had considered death briefly, more than once. It would have been easy to burn himself or to cut his throat open and let the hot blood spurt. But he fought his way past those suicidal thoughts. To banish _them_, he thought of Mai.

And now, he wanted her to like his friends. And he wanted them to like and accept her. It wasn't crucial. But it would be pleasant to have a handful of people both he and Mai could count on, people who would be pleased and happy the day that he and Mai wed. And that day was coming. Zuko wasn't sure when. But he knew with unwavering certainty, that marriage to Mai was part of his future.

"Them?" Mai took another cookie, then another sip of tea. "Oh, them." She shrugged. "They're, um, not what I'm accustomed to. Psychotic and hyper are more my experience." Mai shrugged again. "But, I could get used to them, I suppose. The little one, the earthbender, I like her."

"Toph, her name is Toph."

"Whatever. The Kyoshi Warrior is sensible and smart. And she fights with just weapons, like me. I can admire that. Her boyfriend's the same, but more annoying."

"And the Avatar? Katara?"

"He's cheerful, isn't he?" This was said with Mai's typical dryness. Zuko nodded. "Sort of like a mellower Ty Lee. The waterbender is um, pleasant."

"So, do you _like _them?" The young Fire Lord ran a nervous hand through thick brown hair and peered at Mai, his gaze unrelenting.

"Why is it so important that I do? They're _your_ friends."

Zuko wrestled with words, trying to find the right ones. It took him a minute. "Because! What you think means a lot. It has since, well, since that day back at the palace, when we were kids and…" Mai raised one slender finger. He stopped the flow of words, knowing now that she understood. Pulling out a chair, he sat down across from Mai and took one of her hands in his. "We've never really been a part of anything, Mai, a group of people who care about each other, I mean. My friends, I'd like them to be yours too."

"And how do you know that's what they want? Have you asked them?"

"No, not outright; but they're good people. They'll want to include you."

"And if they don't like me?" Mai was playing with him now, or forcing him to cover all the possibilities at least. Finished with her tea and cookies, she'd taken out a blade and spun it with slow deliberateness, keeping her gold eyes on the rotating metal.

Behind Mai's nonchalant tone and the 'whatever' attitude, Zuko thought he saw worry in the slump of her shoulders. Maybe being liked and included was more important to her than she would ever let on.

"They like you." He leaned in close, whispering the words, his breath tickling the shell of her ear. "I lo…."

"I know."

Sokka, wearing a sly smirk, called from across the room. "Hey you two lovebirds come over here and join us."

Zuko whispered again. "Want to?"

He watched as Mai took a peek at the gang, somehow sizing them all up or giving them one last look over before making a decision.

"Yeah, yeah I do."

The Fire Lord waited while she tucked her blade away and then took her hand. His smile was wide and his gaze proud as he walked with Mai. Friends were one thing. She was something else entirely. Still, Zuko was glad everyone fit together, oddly perhaps, but well enough.


End file.
